When Perth property developer Manuel Jardim was 33 he realised he was burned out. The constant stress of running two businesses, working 18 hour days and the added strain of a family tragedy had left him an anxious mess. It took the most modern of therapy, delivered by a smartphone app to set him on the path to a new $26 million business.

"Around five years ago I was sitting down with a client in a normal meeting in a cafe. He asked me a very simple question I've answered a hundred times before and all of a sudden I had this adrenalin rush," Jardim said.

"I excused myself and went to the bathroom and had another one. I had tunnel vision, I felt like I was going to pass out. All this fear came on me and all this anxiety. I'd never felt anything like that before. It was horrendous."

Jardim's story is not uncommon. The Australian Psychological Society's study of stress and wellbeing found Australians were experiencing lower levels of workplace wellbeing and higher amounts of stress, depression and anxiety in 2015 than in 2011 when the survey started.

Manual Jardim was burned out and anxious, but the Happiness Trap app has helped him get his mental health in check and make better business decisions.
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This year 31 per cent of survey respondents reported feeling stressed about workplace issues.

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Unable to answer simple business questions, Jardim consulted a psychologist who started him on so-called Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT). However it was through the use of an ACT app that Mr Jardim got his life back and was able to make a $26 million business decision.

Happinesss trap

"The psychologist got me to sit down and do some mindfulness exercises. He also gave me a CD, which was one of Dr Russ Harris' CDs on mindfulness … Then ACT Companion: The Happiness Trap App came out, so I purchased it," Jardim said.

"The app is really useful because it's got the same kind of audio and lessons from The Happiness Trap book and the mindfulness CD."

Sydney-based psychologist Anthony Berrick, who treats clients with anxiety disorders, created the app after his clients complained about the antiquated bundles of paper and CDs.

"It teaches people to open up about their feelings and to live more effectively, rather than struggling with their feelings," he said.

"The intention is for the app to be used under the guidance of a clinician who is trained in ACT or with the Happiness Trap book."

About 11,000 copies of the app have been sold at $15 each, and about 15,000 health professionals use ACT in Australia.

Berrick said that using the app with the 10 per cent of his clients he consults with remotely via video conferencing has been particularly effective because he can access their "homework" activities as soon as they're completed, helping bridge the distance.

"Face-to-face sessions will always have a place … but apps can really help to enhance therapy."

﻿$26 million decision

Jardim, who uses the app every morning, said it has helped clear the "haze".

"What you're doing is building your emotional muscles," he said. "I was more relaxed and calm and then I was able to take on more projects. The reality is that I'm doing more, but everything's becoming less stressful."

Jardim has also started making business decisions based on a section in the app called "do what matters", which has helped him align his choices with his core values.

"Around two years ago I was a partner in business … but I was also working on something else. By December we had to make a decision … the feeling was that we either all had to work on the business 100 per cent, or we had to do something else," he said.

"I had another project in the pipeline with no capital behind it … the question was, am I going to go for what I really value, or am I going to go for what's more secure?